PaRappa The Rapper
PaRappa The Rapper is an anime television series based on the video game series of the same name, originally airing on Fuji TV in 2001, and rebooted and reworked by ABS in 2015. Original series (2001) The show was originally intended to be targeted towards teenagers and young adults, the main age demographic that was targeted by PaRappa's video game series. The show that resulted, however, was targeted at children under the age of 12. Premise The show centers around the adventures of PaRappa, a dog who has a great talent in rapping, and his friends, Sunny, PJ and Katy. PaRappa appears to have a very close relationship with Sunny Funny, an anthropomorphic sunflower character who gets along well with her friends, PaRappa being one of them. PaRappa, however, does not try to win her heart all the time, but rather bonds to her as a friend. Their relationship soon progresses, and at the end of the series, it becomes apparent that PaRappa and Sunny are more than just friends. When not expressing affection with Sunny, PaRappa is seen engaging in games and activities with his friends. Reception Despite the show not living up to its original expectations, the anime still had a cult following. The name "PaRappa The Rapper" seemed to be slightly ironic, as PaRappa is very rarely seen rapping in the show. This may have been due to the sudden shift in its demographic. Rodney Greenblat, who designed the titular PaRappa, said that he had not influenced the plot or show's development in any way. He believed that the show was simply a marketing tool for PaRappa merchandise. The show ran on Fuji Television (and a number of stations affiliated with the Fuji Network System) for 30 episodes, split across two seasons, through April 2001 to January 2002. Reruns were previously shown by ABS Television in 2005 (only 7 of the original 30 episodes were shown, as the network's founder ordered the interruption of the 8th episode and the series' cancellation), and then again in 2013 via the ABS Plus CS channel, but the show has been entirely removed from ABS schedules with a brand-new series in production. Negative attention from peers Rodney Alan Greenblat Rodney Greenblat, who designed the characters for the PaRappa games, slammed the 2001 anime series in an interview with an online gaming magazine. Below is an excerpt from Gamasutra's interview: "show's producers decided that they wouldn't let anyone from the game team side work on the TV side, they didn't want to pull anyone from the game development for the TV show development. And then they wanted to slate the show for little kids, 5-year-olds or something, mostly to sell toys. There were two different animation houses doing the show and each had a slightly different style and that was really bugging me; my characters looked a little different in one episode to the next. I had to create a whole new PaRappa world and check things; I would get rushes for each episode and make corrections, and they wouldn't even do anything about it! Characters kept on changing and messing up... in the game, PaRappa could drive a car so you figure he's 16 or 17, but in the show, he's sitting in the third grade and his antics were based on what 8 or 9-year-olds are doing!" Kenji Yukimura Kenji Yukimura, the founder of Kabushiki Gaisha ABS, had been enlisted to distribute the series internationally via the ABS International satellite channel in 2005. However, around 7 episodes into the series, Kenji Yukimura ordered that the show be canceled. Just hours later, ABS N24 interviewed him regarding the decision. Presenter: ''"And now for some breaking news regarding our TV network. The PaRappa The Rapper anime series, that originally aired in 2001, has been removed from the Aso Broadcasting System's TV schedule by request of the head of Kabushiki Gaisha ABS after just 7 out of 30 episodes aired. The show was just canceled a few hours ago, whilst the 8th episode was interrupted halfway through. With us right now is the founder of our broadcasting company, Kenji Yukimura. Kenji, it was a rather puzzling decision from our point of view, can you explain this bizarre series of events?"'' Kenji: ''"I tried to get this show off the air before it made its way onto the ABS schedule, but Fuji TV still went ahead with it. And the show is nothing like what it was promised to be. 'False advertising' doesn't even describe it. If PaRappa was a real person, he'd probably have ordered the dismissal of their producers... and... *sobbing*"'' Presenter: ''"And what exactly lead to the recent cancellation?"'' Kenji: ''"It's an insult to my childhood! I loved the series of PlayStation games that put him in this place, but this stupid anime series killed him! Case in point; the most recent game was released in 2001, THE SAME YEAR that this s*** premiered on TV. *more sobbing*"'' Presenter: ''"Ok, I wasn't expecting such a reaction, and sorry for the language there. If you've just tuned into ABS N24, we have a very upset Kenji Yukimura with u-"'' Kenji: ''"SHUT UP!" *throws a mug at presenter*'' Presenter: ''"What the hell are you doi-"'' *"PROGRAMME INTERRUPTED" slide cuts off program* Continuity announcer: ''"We're sorry, but due to an alleged assault in the newsroom, we are no longer able to present our scheduled programming at this time. Please tune into the main ABS channel for supplementary programming as we work to resolve the issue."'' Kenji's emotional breakdown in the news studio attracted much attention to himself. Kenji declined to comment. The interview has recently been compared to Ryutaro Nonomura's breakdown, which happened whilst he was making a public apology after misusing millions of yen worth of government funds to pay for his own spa breaks. New series (2015) Rumors In late 2014, some media speculators said that a new anime series starring PaRappa The Rapper could be in production, and set for a debut in 2015. These claims were rejected by fans, who believed that the series has ended entirely. Fuji Television stated that "in no way, shape or form are we working on a new PaRappa The Rapper series." Confirmation In April 2015, Kabushiki Gaisha ABS officially announced that they were working to produce a new show that would be totally different from the original 2001 series. A promotional website was also launched at parappa.abs.jp. Premise Kabushiki Gaisha ABS has stated that the new PaRappa The Rapper series would be closer to the spirit of the original games that started the series. They also stated that the new series would be presented in 3DCG, initially reported as being similar to the style of PaRappa The Rapper 2 for the PlayStation 2, and was later likened to a 1999 music video released by fictional band MilkCan, who was actually the result of a PaRappa franchise spin-off. The animation team would be run by numerous companies, but would be lead by Kabushiki Gaisha ABS (PaRappa's 2015 iteration being their first anime series), J.C. Staff (who worked on the animation for the 2001 Fuji TV PaRappa ''series) and Shin-ei Animation (of ''Doraemon fame), and would be supervised by Shikoku Television Broadcasting (an ABS Television affiliate in Central Japan, who is starting their production career with this show). With Dred Foxx, PaRappa's original voice actor in the games confirmed to star in the new series, it was clear that the show would actually be produced in English, much like other ABS productions. ABS also stated that the new series would not be driven by a story to the same extent as the original; ABS believes that this is why the original series was only on the air for 30 episodes. ABS plans for the series to run much longer than the original, and hopes that it will run into at least 2020. When asked for comment, ABS stated that "we're being very ambitious. We've never made an anime series ourselves before, but with STB and Shin-ei on our side, I think we can do it. As PaRappa himself would say, We Gotta Believe." The show premiered on the Aso Broadcasting System on the 20th June 2015. Companion series An off-the-wall talk show/anime hybrid starring PaRappa as the host, airing under the name A Morning with PaRappa, was originally scheduled to the air like a morning program for ABS' Friday schedule, filling the hole left by the cancellation of the Let's Go! Anpanman Club! However, when the program finally started, the Anpanman Club had returned to ABS, forcing the new show to run immediately after the Anpanman Club, at 9:00 am on Friday. This talk show was relatively unusual, as it targeted itself towards a family audience, whilst most other shows of the genre were mostly aimed towards middle-aged adults. Um Jammer Lammy is also speculated to have her own show as a companion to the new PaRappa series. Lammy appears in the new PaRappa series as a supporting character, however, no plans have yet been confirmed for her own separate show. Kabushiki Gaisha ABS has stated that "we are currently considering the feasibility of a spin-off Um Jammer Lammy series, however the development of such a series will depend entirely on PaRappa's popularity, and potential demand for such a spin-off." Kabushiki Gaisha ABS has not commented about Lammy appearing in her own series since November 2015. Advertising The show was heavily advertised by ABS as one of its major shows. Meet-and-greet sessions with PaRappa and his friends were held at the ABS Broadcasting Center and the HBS-Harborland Broadcasting Center, and ABS and its affiliates adopted PaRappa's "You Gotta Believe" motto as their slogan. ABS was also seen holding other PaRappa-themed activities around Japan around the premiere weeks, however, with the show taking a sudden nosedive in popularity, this no longer appears to be the case. Many new PaRappa merchandise items were available, and special figurines (of the characters wearing ABS staff outfits, with PaRappa, Sunny Funny, Lammy, Matt Major, and Katy Kat variants) were given out for free to ABS Broadcasting Center visitors. abs.jp's PaRappa website also had a page dedicated to downloadable wallpapers featuring PaRappa and his friends. In contrast to ABS' aggressive marketing, the show is not being advertised as heavily by other networks in other countries. Distribution In addition to airing the show across Japan via the ABS Television Network, Kabushiki Gaisha ABS has licensed the show to the following channels: Conflicts with Anpanman The show has caused conflicts with the previously network-defining children's anime series Let's Go! Anpanman: PaRappa The Rapper'' and the cancellation of the Day of Anpanman''' On the 17th of June, 3 days before PaRappa The Rapper was set to premiere, the Day of Anpanman was canceled, and the show itself (Let's Go! Anpanman) was stripped from the ABS schedule. Some insiders put the blame on the following factors: * ABS concentrating all of its production efforts on the upcoming PaRappa series, * The 3-times-delayed DoA date (the 20th of June, 2015) conflicted with PaRappa The Rapper's premiere date, and * Viewers declaring a low level of tolerance for any potential delay of PaRappa's first episode. '''The DoA's revival and its effects on ''PaRappa The Rapper Some people have expressed concern that the DoA's revival, and Let's Go! Anpanman's return to its weekly timeslot on ABS may lead to PaRappa becoming ignored by the network. Kabushiki Gaisha ABS since addressed these concerns by giving PaRappa one of 7 individual 30-minute "free passes" for Anpanman-free content on the Day's schedule. The other slots were occupied by other major programs, such as Doraemon, ABS N6 and Nichijou: My Ordinary Life. With the titular PaRappa also having been declared the network's new mascot, Kabushiki Gaisha ABS has also stated that Anpanman would appear alongside PaRappa in network advertising "for a limited period prior to the DoA", rather than Anpanman permanently replacing PaRappa as the network's mascot. Further measures, to avoid the DoA leaving marks on PaRappa's position as the network's flagship kodomo anime series, went unannounced. Doraemon and Nobita Nobi were appointed as main "representative faces" of the network after PaRappa was stripped of both his mascot duty and his spot on the ABS programming lineup. PaRappa Project In November 2015, ABS noticed an alarming drop in viewership around PaRappa's timeslot. This lead to some fans of the show to worry that the series may be canceled. ABS, however, entirely rejected these claims, and Shichirou Minami (head of STB Television Productions) made this public statement at the ABS Broadcasting Center on the 19th of December: "I, Shichirou Minami, head of Shikoku Television Broadcasting and its STB Television Productions division, do not believe that the show is dying. Many STB employees, and workers at other ABS stations all over Japan, simply believe that the show is in need of another type of support, wherever that be new spin-off shows, relaunching our widespread advertising campaigns, or some additional public exposure. The rumors of the show being canceled by us are total, solid gold, carbon-fiber-reinforced lies. As a woman who knows how to turn misfortunes around, I am confident that ''PaRappa The Rapper simply needs a few more miles on the clock before he can run at his full potential. To put it simply, there are TV shows that are wildly popular for a few months after their premiere, but still, retain their most loyal fans after everyone else walks away and goes home. But then the network draws the others back into it with new development or spin-off. That's the stance we're hoping to take here."'' Kabushiki Gaisha ABS then started the "''PaRappa Project''", a massive campaign to give PaRappa extra franchise footing. This project failed miserably, with no corporations or businesses willing to take part. Talks with the Tokyo Metro to start running PaRappa-themed trains in the Japanese capital's underground railway tunnels, similar to JR Shikoku's Anpanman Trains (the latter fleet, however, serving much more remote areas), were called off. The Tokyo Metro's operators sent ABS a formal project cancellation notice, in which they noted how the Odakyu F-Train was stripped of its special Doraemon-themed livery by order of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government just one month after entering service in mid-2011. A TV anime spin-off starring Um Jammer Lammy and a talk show hosted by PaRappa were "brought out of the ideas library and being worked on as we speak" with the announcement of the PaRappa Project. A Morning with PaRappa made it to the air, however, Lammy's spin-off anime has been canceled after no status updates regarding the latter were released prior. Cancellation On April 1, 2016, Kabushiki Gaisha ABS announced that the PaRappa The Rapper anime series had finally been canceled after 10 months on the air. Some people dismissed this as an April Fools joke, however, ABS has since removed all mention of the show from their website, stripped all PaRappa-related branding elements (including the then-current "You Gotta Believe" motto) from its networks, put Doraemon and Nobita Nobi in the position of new network mascots, deleted the show from its ABS Anywhere video-on-demand service, and issued this statement to viewers: "PaRappa The Rapper has indeed been canceled. Before you ask, NO. This is NOT A JOKE. The show is being pulled from our schedules, STB Television Productions and Shin-ei Animation have all confirmed that they would be ceasing all work on future episodes, all unsold merchandise is being withdrawn from sale, and the show has been removed from our ABS Anywhere service. We can not Believe for any longer, and we're certain that there are many others in the same state as us. Just keep this in mind: We are just as disappointed as you are. Some changes to our branding have also resulted from our attempt to erase PaRappa from every single corner of our network." International broadcasters are yet to announce what actions they will take after ABS' cancellation of all future episodes. ABS' developments with former PaRappa broadcasters post-cancellation On Saturday the 9th of April, 2016, Kabushiki Gaisha ABS has announced that it would try its hardest to resume business with major networks that had their reputations tarnished by the failed PaRappa series. A day after making this statement, ABS announced a domestic broadcasting deal in Italy with Mediaset. With the now-ABS-flagship Doraemon series having aired on the Boing children's channel for years before ABS even entered business with PaRappa on Mediaset's sister Italia 1 channel, ABS openly stated that "it's best to stick to what does you the best benefits in the long term". The spin-off digital terrestrial network ABS Televisione Italia was formed as part of this deal, serving East Asian programming to the country with Italian subtitles provided by the newly-formed Kabushiki Gaisha ABS Lucca Annexe. Doraemon was an exception to this, with Mediaset's Italian dub running as an alternate audio track, along with ABS' English subtitles. Other English-subtitled programs remain on ABS International, which coincidentally started airing on terrestrial digital television at the same time as Televisione Italia. Category:Aso Broadcasting System Category:Television programs established in 2001 Category:Television programs established in 2015 Category:Anime Category:Jamaica